Abstract : The response of male rats to the restriction of food intake to 2 hours each day for 14 to 16 days has been assessed by the measurement of food intakes, body weights, liver glycogen concentrations, and lipogenesis of adipose tissue (C14-acetate incorporation in vitro). The animals were fed either a 20% casein diet (controls) or an isocaloric 5% casein diet. As a consequence of meal-eating, and regardless of dietary protein level, the average daily food intake and body weight gain were decreased whereas the lipogenesis in vitro and liver glycogen concentration were increased in comparison with rats fed ad libitum, which is in agreement with earlier findings using normal diets. These observations suggest that the decreased body fat of rats fed a 5% casein diet is not a consequence of an impaired ability of adipose tissue to synthesize fat. (Author)